Wow, it's been a long time!

It's been quite some time since I posted last!

I went for two quarters without my tablet at the University. I didn't miss it much to be honest. The only thing I missed was not recording my lectures, but I didn't have time to listen anyway.

I now have a Fujitsu ST5112 that replaced my ST5012. I put Vista on it, and it's bloated as all hell. I only have 20 gigs free on my machine. Time to pick and choose wisely which programs I'll install.

Anyway, I'll update more when I have time. I have one quarter left, and then it's CFA/CFP world for me!

OCRing Books for classes

Ok, this is a very broken comment that I posted on Student Tablet PC.com.
I have 10 min before getting ready for classes so here it is.

Well, let's just say that this whole "paperless" experience is becoming a pain. I LOVE my tablet pc. I love having books in PDF to read besides once in a while getting headaches from looking at a computer screen all day. My problem is this;
When I first grabbed my tablet and purchased my OpticBook scanner, I was scanning away. 300 DPI grayscale. My books were enormous. I even "OCRed" my books and it only added a very slight amount of space. Cool I thought! Then I found out I was doing it "wrong." I kept the image and OCRed the book, but I also never spent the time to correct the OCR problems. That's one thing that keeping the image (and the size) helped with. In order to get your PDF to a very small size (a 3 gig book into 5 megs), you'd have to literally spend DAYS correcting every stupid little spacing problem, every period that it sees as a comma, every sigma or alpha or square root or fraction or.. You get my point. This is much much much more hassle than it's worth. And to think I spent thousands of dollars to do this as well. I spend more time this quarter trying to figure how to use my tablet in an efficient way and got lost doing it.I love how there are options, but this option is no where close to actually being what it should. The OCR technology isn't there yet. I used ABBYY finereader pro 8.0 - the latest and greatest (Ranked #1 from businesses and other ratings sites) but it still falls short by a wide margin.As I said, I entered this experience a year ago with wide open eyes and great expectations. I still use my tablet daily (taking it to school this morning for my round of Econ, Finance and Math classes) and actually have been trying to get a hold of Fujitsu to see if I can get some sort of return because it is far lacking in what their sales staff and repair staff have promised. This is not exactly a problem with Fujitsu as a whole. I say this because I still love the form of this computer (much like I'm sure Tracy loves her Motion) but the technology isn't there yet. I read constantly what all of these tablet websites state. I also watch the ink shows as an economist would. I think it's lacking, period. It will get there, but I don't know when and I don't know how many of the trendsetter or early adopter's dollars it will cost before it actually delivers what it should.
That small rant being said,600 DPI still gives me errors when you print a page with a thousand stock quotes. All math symbols are not in the english ascii and thus won't be recognized. Pictures will have to be resized and bordered and you'll spend a lot of time looking at this through your software making sure it's perfect. Rs are seen as

Good luck. This is the last book I'll scan and want to make into a text only ebook style PDF. I'd rather buy one for $80 than spend 2 or 3 days on it.

BlueBeam Revu

You'll have to forgive me for dropping off the face of the earth over the Summer. I had been too busy to post or even really read up on much of the trends in the tablet pc world. My two favorite spots have seemed to have trouble, namely the tabletpcbuzz. The Studenttabletpc site also is experiencing a bit of errors on almost every page I go to. GottaBeMobile.com seems to be filling in the shoes to an extent. They've got a marvelous looking site and recently added a forum. I love watching the inkshows to get tidbits of information I lack.

One piece of software that I've tested was the BlueBeam Revu pdf mark-up software. I thought it was excellent. It marks up PDFs just like you'd expect PDF Annotator to do, but it seems a bit more user friendly to me. This with the options to add comment pictures (Vector, how cool!) to your documents is a big bonus when it comes down to flagging for future studying time or special annotations. It is adding some of the functions that I enjoy in OneNote to it.
I have been corresponding with a salesperson via e-mail about the software. I've learned some great tidbits as well from her.

First, there's student discounts of course. Most in the tablet pc world fail to realize just how important this is to some of us. I cannot afford to go drop over $200 for ANY software that just happens to be in a market that has low demand thus is a specialty item. I say to all of your anti MS users out there - if you gripe about the OS costing so much and the monopoly they have, then how can we justify some of these prices for annotators or markup tools such as Mind Manager?

After several e-mails, Ms. Haynes quoted me a price for the basic BlueBeam Revu that has all the CAD printing software stripped of it. It is basically the part that deals with MS Office package. This is going to cost $20. $20! This is much better than PDF Annotator's price, and with the look and feel of the software, it's on my #1 thing to buy this quarter.

Secondly, I've been discussing the highlighter pen with Ms. Haynes and she has informed me that they are replacing the "pen" function with a style that's more of the highlighter we expect in an annotation software. This was to be released a couple of weeks ago but I haven't checked on it yet.

Thirdly, I haven't had the trial version crash once on me. PDF Annotator had a problem with freezing up and slowing my machine down, but so far so good with Revu.

My last point is simple. I use Adobe Acrobat to scan, print, and do OCR on PDF files. Over the summer my family has been enjoying the great Northwest's parks and trails every week. We've made a point to find a new trail every weekend and go for a hike that we haven't seen yet. I logged onto a site and downloaded some PDF maps of our area and different trail heads. I saved one and tried to print with Adobe Acrobat, and I got a bunch of ink mess. It seems that Acrobat couldn't tell the difference between the grey and black areas of the PDF. I tried again with another setting and got the same result.
I loaded Revu and got the best quality PDF print I think I've ever seen (on my bubble-jet printer that is). I applaud this software and give it two (papercut-less) thumbs up!

Going... Papered?

I've started this quarter out exactly the same as I started last year's - with a backpack full of books, pens and a batch of paper. Not only is this heavy while I walk to class, but quite awkward as I go from my slate to paper.
I actually have to print power points and write on the side which is making me wish I could reach for that "add more space" button quite often.

There is another side of going non-paperless that I enjoy and that's the books. I actually like having the book there open where I can look at it and work on my homework or study for a quiz more than flipping through open windows with a stylus, going back and forth and losing my place.
I also like not having to worry about finding a plug in source for power between classes to make sure I can finish the lecture without my computer shutting down on me. I mistakenly purchased a long life battery as my 2nd choice which will not fit in the Fujitsu leather portfolio case.
This week I'll be scanning my notes and preparing for my Fujitsu to return to its home - in my classrooms.

Ouch!

Well, after enjoying my summer and spending as much time as I could with my family, school's returned in full swing and I neglected to get my tablet fixed over the summer.
While the problem with the screen peeling up is minor, I also had some issues with the computer itself. I get errors on shutdown either from digitizor being unable to write at some address or the screen all of a sudden turning green, blue or black without the cursor.
Shipping it to Fujitsu was expensive. My feelings told me I shouldn't have insured the unit, since I'm really insuring UPS instead of myself, but I figured 50$ would be better than being suck with a broken or stolen unit.
After owning the machine for almost a year, I can say that I've been mostly happy with it.
I still wish it had a more powerful video processor inside and was a bit faster.

Finals are Finally Over

Finals are over, and I'm relieved. I can't say whether my tablet was a benefit in total to studying for tests or not, but I can say that it helped and hindered in taking a final for my MIS class.
It took some convincing to allow my professor to allow me to use the tablet during the closed book/open note midterm and final. What really helped was the ability to turn off the wireless (really it was the fact that even though I was in the computer building, it was made out of concrete and there was no signal in the room whatsoever) and that the professor also owned a Fujitsu tablet and was playing with it and figuring out how it works. During the final I used the search function in windows to plow through power points to find some information I needed. This is when I realised one of the limitations to using OneNote or GoBinder - when you print to OneNote etc., it doesn't recognise the text in what you're printing as text - only as a picture. When searching in OneNote, since I left the handwriting as it was and didn't convert to text, the spelling of the word recognition often made the application pass over my notes. Also, the one lengthy page standard of OneNote made scrolling through power points that I had printed to OneNote very tedious. It was very hard to find what I needed by scrolling along 50 pages of info.
I've thought about using Power point and just annotating the slides themselves. This would not allow the recording feature that I love in OneNote, but the notes would be organized much more intelligently while being searchable. If anyone knows how to fix the print to OneNote feature to recognise the text, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!
I've also decided that the tablet will go down to Seattle to get repaired. I will not try to replace it. By the time that a slate could offer anything that I wish, I'm sure years will have passed. Although the topic of price is a touchy subject for any tablet owner, I feel besides what I spent on the unit that I can be satisfied with what I have.
I also ran into a problem when loading power points while OneNote was open. For some reason the power points caused OneNote to freeze up and crash after a few minutes, then the power point would load up in one second as usual. The defaults were all set properly and this only happened at that one time.
The wireless problem that I've had (and have posted on the Buzz about) also has been fixed. My Netgear wireless router reset the other day, and this forced me to really try to configure the settings on my tablet correctly. I cannot get WPA or WPA2 to work with the Fujitsu. WEP is the only thing that has any security that will work. I can connect to the router, but I cannot get to the internet. My wife's Acer will connect and go to the internet, but this poor Fujitsu cannot. I still have no idea why not. I spent some time with a Fujitsu tech trying to figure it out, but they will pretty much stop once you get it working on an unsecured / WEP config and tell you to "play around with it" and try to figure it out. I called Netgear, and they are a complete joke. For my $79 router, they want me to pay over $30 a phone call after my purchase date is over 30 days away. Not only that, but they outsource to India. Try talking about passwords when it's "W like whale" etc. Blah. I'm usually OK with outsourcing, but when it's services for what I've paid for, I have a problem with that.


Well, that's it for now. I have to get my son going for school this morning. I'll post or link about a function I attended last night dealing with reproductive rights and scientific and medically accurate education in schools. All I can say for now is that if you're a fundie, you're my enemy. I'm so sick of religious people limiting and walking over the rights of my children and I just so you can live in a world of your making. I don't walk on your rights, and you'd better not walk on mine. One out of a hundred people that attended this speech which was totally nonpartisan and unireligious got so upset by listening to a story of a gal that was highly educated in a home school environment but not in sexuality and responsibility that was "thrown to the wolves" by her parents by leaving her unprepared for her first encounter with a boy that was interested in her at a party. The lady was so irate, as I could tell by her fidgeting, discussions with everyone around her during the presentation, and the way she made a complete boob out of herself by challenging stats from our own government when it comes to our STI, HIV, teen pregnancy, and age of first sexual encounter.
I'm completely floored at what people put their attention to, and what they totally ignore.
I hate to say this, but people of blind faith are my enemy.

Buyer's Remorse

I've contacted Fujitsu via e-mail and I have a decision ahead of me that I'm not enjoying.
I purchased my tablet for an obscene amount of money, and I'm feeling that the value I received for my cash isn't worth it.
My problem is simple; the sales staff at Fujitsu are misinformed.
I spoke to several of them, and they informed me that the video chip was upgraded enough to run Vista. I even talked about it on the Buzz when I was contemplating on my purchase. I was considering the Electrovaya SC3000 and the Fujitsu ST503x.
After owning it for a few months, I've found different. Even when I go to a website that has moving graphics let alone anything graphically intensive, the screen/cursor lags quite a bit. I have 2 gigs in the machine for goodness sake.
It's 2006! Why do they have such crappy video chips in these machines that cost more than I purchased my Jeep for?

My decision ahead - Do I try to return the unit to Fujitsu and go for yet another tablet that I can't demo (Electrovaya) or abandon the Slate form that I love for a heavy convertible that has more power and can run the future OS? I'm honestly feeling that this isn't worth it.

It's finals week and I can't spend time pondering this. I don't even know if Fujitsu is going to release something new around the corner. I am feeling I should cash in and wait for them to get their heads out of (I wish I could really speak my mind here) the sand and produce something that quite frankly desktops had 4 years ago. There are no excuses they can honestly give.

Tablet PCs and Politics

I have created this site to give new Tablet PC users help in basic tasks that I had to learn the hard way. I researched for days, weeks, and sometimes months to get the information that I needed. Rob Bushway and Dennis Rice have created a great website for doing just this at www.gottabemobile.com which host a plethora of walk-throughs and advice for those users who are at the level that I am at now.
I have noticed that there are many posts on personal blog spots that involve religion and politics. I have wondered if this would annoy or anger people if I did post some of my ideas and reasons why I have my personal beliefs since I've seen this. It's amazing how many people I see that are involved in religion etc. posting their views on links that I have clicked simply to get Tablet PC advice.

I don't have many readers here, partly because this blog is new and partly because there are a few thousand other sites just like mine out there. What do you think?
I live in the Pacific Northwest. I was raised in a very religious home that I consider pretty radical. I consider myself progressive and neither a Republican or a Democrat. I have always been interested in religion, but I am not a member of any particular flavor. Religion has mixed with Politics as of late and I feel that we are on the wrong course in our country.

Are any of you interested in reading different viewpoints as I am? Would you read if I spent the time to link particular posts that catch my eye?
Are you fixed in your beliefs so much that anything from another point of view would cause you to ignore another human?

I'm very interested in your comments on this. As a student I've found many christian groups coming onto my campus who do not attend the college to recruit people into their fold. I enjoy having discussions with them and unless they are complete idiots when it comes to actual history (not as recorded in the Bible) we have great conversations. Let me know what you think.

The Mythical Little Guy

And most of us think we have a good hold on what we believe to be right....
http://themythicallittleguy.blogspot.com/

I'm into my third month now...

I feel that I have got the hang of this machine. I know that it’s only been two months since I’ve owned my Fujitsu, but I think I am using my machine to its potential as a student. I’ve recorded lectures, developed a rather simple way to take notes, and used it for review sessions for midterms. Finals are around the corner and I’ve planned on how to study for my finals. I need to incorporate a new method – perhaps the Cornell method.
Rarely do I find myself pulling out the keyboard, but I’m glad that I purchased the leather portfolio case so that when I am doing some excel work or typing up a paper I can find a free spot on campus and still enjoy the laptop mode of the slate. Fujitsu has a nice way of using a laptop mode, but I’ve noticed that I can’t hold the computer in my lap while typing like I could a convertible. I can enjoy the slate’s advantages during class or lecture, while working with a group, and every time I walk to and from school with a backpack that doesn’t weigh 50lbs.
I’ve used a trial of Mind Manager for a marketing paper. I really felt it helped me focus on the structure of the paper, but all I was really doing was the same thing I do when I write any thesis. I was spending more time on the map than I did in the writing. I didn’t dive too deep into Mind Manager, but I felt that if it was going to be used as a note taking program that I’d want options to export all penned notes to a file as well. It may do this, but I didn’t see how.
I’ve used OneNote for most of my note taking. As soon as I loaded it up, it looked pretty much the same as GoBinder as far as how everything had a tab etc. I can honestly say I doubt I’d use another note taking program. It is indispensable in my opinion, especially if you are recording a lecture while taking notes. Every time you ink, there is a link being created to the time in the recorded lecture. If you click on an icon when hovering over the ink, you can listen to that exact moment in the lecture. I find this very good indeed!
I haven’t scanned my books into OneNote. I find that with all of my notes OneNote starts lagging a bit or it hangs on exiting. This is very annoying. I’m not sure if it’s because of a bad load, or if it’s taking its sweet time in saving the audio file or what. All I can say on this is that slates have a distance to go to achieve the technology that will improve the CPU power while keeping the heat down and the battery life extended. I look forward to that day.
I did have to use four pieces of paper yesterday for a lab exercise. Our operations management class all piled into one of the computer science labs and met a gentleman that teaches the university’s SAP class. All I will say is that structure is amazing. I want to look into getting more experience in SAP soon. I will be practicing more when I have free time. Unfortunately, I cannot use my tablet while doing this. Why would I?
With using my tablet for just about everything computer related, I’ve grown fond of my desktop once again. When I received my tablet I was engrossed in sucking up everything I could learn about it like a sponge. I studied the different companies that sell tablet pcs, decided which form of computer to purchase, and even made mind maps in order to learn some of the software that everyone was buzzing about on some of the different forums available out there for tablet pc discussions. I’ve found that doing homework that involves Excel or Access or any other database software is tiresome if you are bending over a big chair to a small table, on the couch bending over to the coffee table, or just on a bench somewhere using your wireless keyboard. There’s comfort in having a 21” computer screen and a full sized keyboard. I feel that soon I’ll be working on a macro system of study and computer use. Technology will keep advancing in ways that are hopefully unpredictable. We will be driven to consistently improve the techniques we have learned to incorporate into our productive lives. I remember making a light pen for my Commodore 64c so that I could draw onto the TV screen. How time has progressed.


One other thing I’ve been using my tablet for is helping my son with his homework or projects. We found ourselves helping him with his science project and coming up with ideas to explain how sound travels through air, solid objects and liquids. He did a great job on it. I’m proud to know he has a huge craving for science. We in America are failing when it comes to progressing science. Most industrialized countries have two times the students graduating with science degrees every year. I’ve taken him to Western Washington University and showed him all of the fossils and stones and artwork that we have on display, and he was amazed that they had a room with the title “Paleontology,” which is what he’s interested in at the time.

“What we need more of is Science.” – Mc Hawking (http://www.mchawking.com/)